Metro Schools principals are taking control of their school budgets

Starting next year, half of the Metro Schools operating budget – more than $400 million – will be directly under the control of school principals. They will decide how that money can best be spent to benefit their students, choosing everything from staffing to instructional strategies and what extra support services to offer.

It’s the completion of a plan that’s been phased over the last two years, and it gives principals the power to design how their schools operate and how they teach children. It’s called student-based budgeting, and it is exactly what it sounds like: schools’ budgets are based on the students they serve and those students’ needs, not district regulations and mandates.

Student-based budgeting is a pretty big change from the way school funding is traditionally done. As the district moves forward with this, these are the six things you need to know about it.

1. It’s all about the students.

Schools will be funded according to a formula that’s based on the students who are in the building. That doesn’t just mean the number of students, but also the characteristics of those students.

The amount of money each school gets is based on individual student needs. Schools will get a base amount of money in their budgets for each student served, and that amount will go up depending on certain factors like exceptional education needs, English Learner status, prior academic performance and more. This brings greater equity to school budgeting because funding is the same for similar students no matter where they go to school.

2. Principals have the power.

Principals need the ability to make decisions based on their professional expertise and knowledge of their own students. With student-based budgeting, principals are empowered to design their schools. They will be encouraged to try innovative practices and make whatever decisions are necessary to build schools that deliver instruction tailored just for their students.

For example, if a principal feels like his or her students need an extra school counselor, he or she can build that into the school budget. The same is true if the school needs and intensive ACT prep program or more English Learner teachers. It’s all up to the school leader.

When school design decisions are made closer to the students and not handed down from central office, instruction can be more personalized to student needs.

3. It means more money for English Learners and others.

Metro Schools intends to dramatically increase direct spending on English Learners. EL status is a significant predictor of academic success, and EL students need greater supports in the classroom.

To give schools the flexibility to better serve their EL students, they will get more money for each EL student they serve. The same will happen for students with disabilities and students who have struggled academically.

4. It will give greater support to struggling students – no matter where they go to school.

Prior academic performance is by far the greatest predictor of future academic success, so students who are behind academically will be funded at a higher level. So that schools can get these students back on track early, even more funding will be given to elementary and middle schools for each struggling student they serve.

5. It could mean more money for many schools.

Right now, some Metro schools are funded at much higher levels than others with similar needs. This happens for a lot of reasons, including special status like enhanced option schools. Because student-based budgeting allocates money according to students and not other factors, it will bring equity to school budgets by funding similar schools at similar levels.

This could mean some schools will see greater funding next year, though that would require an increase in the district operating budget. But the results will be worth it: more equitable funding to serve students with similar needs.

6. Intentionally small and other specialty schools will be funded sustainably.

Not every school will be a part of the program. Schools that are intentionally small or operate specialty programs – like the Academy at Old Cockrill, MNPS Virtual School, alternative learning centers and others – will have some flexibility over budgeting, but must be funded in a different way to ensure they are viable and able to operate.

Also, principals will have direct control over a large portion of their school budgets, but not everything. Services like transportation, maintenance, human capital, and others will still be provided centrally.

You may be wondering: where did this idea come from? The district’s strategic plan, Education 2018: Excellence for Every Student, sets forth a vision for every Metro school to create personalized learning environments. Meeting individual students’ needs through tailored instruction looks different at every school. The strategic plan specifically states that schools should create personalized learning environments “influenced and determined by their school’s unique identity, context and capacity.”

It is a popular program nationwide. New York City, Denver, Boston, San Francisco and several other major American cities already do it. It’s easy to see why. Student-based budgeting just makes sense. School leaders know their students and what they need better than anyone else. If principals are to be held accountable for the results of their school, they should be the ones making the school design decisions.

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